Transcript Why is the ATMOSPHERE important?

Warm Up
What is the atmosphere?
Why is the
ATMOSPHERE
important?
What is it?
 What is the atmosphere and how have
we discovered more about it?
 Video Clip
Weather
 Weather is the condition of the earth’s
atmosphere at a particular time and
place
 So what is the atmosphere?
Earth’s Atmosphere
 A thin layer of gases that surrounds the planet
 Makes conditions on earth suitable for living
things
Composition
 Nitrogen – 78%
 Oxygen – 21%
 Carbon dioxide
 Water vapor
 Other gases
 Particles of liquids
and solids
Nitrogen
 Most abundant gas in the atmosphere
 78% of the air we breathe
 N2
 Essential to living things – needed to grow
and repair body cells
 Bacteria convert nitrogen from the air and
then plants use it to create proteins that
people and animals need.
Oxygen
 Second most abundant gas in the air
 Only 21% of the volume
 Usually in the form of O2
 Plants and animals use it
 Important in other processes
 Ozone (O3) – forms when lightning
interacts with Oxygen
Carbon Dioxide
 CO2
 Only in small amounts - .036%
 Essential to life – plants need it to
make food
Other Gases
 Called trace gases because only small
amounts are present
Water Vapor
 Amount in the air
varies from place to
place
 Plays an important
role in the earth’s
weather
 Clouds,
precipitation
Particles
 Pure air is only gases, but this exists
only in a lab
 In the real world, there are many
different particles
– Dust
– Smoke
– Salt
– Other chemicals